


Dreaming Of You

by orphan_account



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Alternate Universe, Coma, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Sad, True Love, kind of, true love transcends everything
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-17
Updated: 2013-08-17
Packaged: 2017-12-23 19:46:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/930356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Carlos helps Cecil dream.</p>
<p>
  <em>Carlos refused to believe that there was no hope. Giving up hope, and even the dream of hope, would be succumbing to despair. Carlos refused to allow himself to stop and sink into that inescapable pit of eternal darkness and despondency. He would never give up.</em>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dreaming Of You

Carlos refused to believe that there was no hope. Giving up hope, and even the dream of hope, would be succumbing to despair. Carlos refused to allow himself to stop and sink into that inescapable pit of eternal darkness and despondency. He would never give up.

 

In college, there was a guest speaker who talked about dreams. He talked about the possibilities of endless possibilities in an infinite heaven of a person’s own mind. A heaven of hell, formed by thoughts instead of shaped by actions in a physical world. The speaker talked about using his theoretical, seemingly-fantastical enterprise to reach out and touch people who were far gone; to empower their imagination and provide them with all the powers of an unaware god. 

 

At the time, it was just interesting. Carlos met with the speaker after the presentation. He shook his hand, thanked him for the fascinating vision, asked for a contact number, encouraged him to continue his research.

 

At the time, Carlos just thought it might be a brilliant story to read in a scientific magazine someday, or even see on a news channel. He might someday call the speaker again and congratulate him on his success.

 

But now, that spark of an impossible idea was Carlos’ last hope for ever grasping happiness again.

 

Carlos found the man again. He detailed his assets and firmly appealed for a chance to be a part of the man’s vision. For months, Carlos and the man worked tirelessly, meticulously, purposefully. They explored every possibility, both of achievement and of error. They did not let any proposed, well-funded projects distract them from the shining light that they believed to lie at the end of the tunnel they were building themselves.

 

Finally, after an eternity of work, after an eternity of sacrificing sleep for this project--which Carlos knew Cecil would disapprove of--he managed to finish it.

 

It was finished, and Carlos had Cecil brought to the lab, while a handful of doctors and nurses followed to ensure he was given proper care.

 

Carlos and the man started the machine and watched Cecil dream.

 

Cecil has been asleep and alone for a very long time. 

 

So very alone.

 

He had been silent for a very long time.

 

Far too silent.

 

But now he could finally dream and feel alive again. Now--Carlos believed--Cecil could speak. He could grace the people in his fictional dream-world with that lovely voice that Carlos missed more than anything.

 

Carlos ran a test, just a small stimulus to the flow of animated brain waves. The man had assured him that it should not affect Cecil’s dreams too much. So after setting up the recommended safety features, Carlos used his own brain waves to gently prod at dream Cecil.

 

The test proved the necessary confirmations and insight into Cecil’s dreams, and Carlos removed the equipment from his head and the man congratulated him.

 

In his dreams, Cecil was a radio host who spoke in a sweet, comforting voice and reported on the daily occurrences that his unconscious dreaming mind created for the sake of having interesting material to report upon. In his dreams, Cecil lived in a city of unusual occurrences, where odd things were passed off as commonplace and completely normal. 

 

In his dreams, Cecil encountered a scientist named Carlos who had perfect hair and was perfect and who Cecil loved without question.

 

Carlos only discovered during his second test, that he was accidentally appearing in Cecil’s dreams through the moments of contact that should have had no effect on Cecil. 

 

With every subsequent test, Carlos found that the dream Carlos was interacting with Cecil again. At first, he panicked, worrying that Cecil might remember everything and the dream would be ruined. That the beautiful world Cecil created would be stained with sadness and despair and longing to reawaken. He drew back, terrified that his meddling and his desire to see what Cecil was seeing would destroy Cecil.

 

But that apparently wasn’t true. He initiated the test again, careful to be more aware of Cecil’s response, and Cecil was clearly thrilled. Carlos watched the dream world, as well as the monitoring equipment’s readings, show Cecil’s joy upon meeting his perfect scientist Carlos again.

 

This was as close as Carlos could get. He tried something different in the next stimulus, and Cecil heard Carlos’ voice. He tried something else, and dream Carlos took Cecil on a date.

 

Cecil’s dream Carlos kissed Cecil. 

 

Cecil smiled in his sleep, and that was enough. 

 

Carlos sat beside Cecil’s bed and held Cecil’s hand, trying and failing to stop crying so he could see the beauty and perfection of that smile while it lasted.

**Author's Note:**

> This made me cry so much while I was writing it.
> 
> Also on my [tumblr](http://maniccrocodilian.tumblr.com/post/58515521874/dreaming-of-you).


End file.
